At a recent Risk Management Society (RIMS) Conference, One Call Care Management reports that it outlined challenges for workers’ compensation stemming from a trend of obesity among workers and key strategies intended to control claims costs and improving outcomes for obese, injured workers.

The session, titled “Obesity Weighs Down Workers’ Compensation” featured key presenter Kevin Glennon, RN, vice president of Home Health and Complex Care for One Call Care Management. According to a news release from One Call Care Management, during the session Glennon stated that obese workers were twice as likely to experience a workers’ compensation injury, and once injured, obese claimants experienced seven times higher medical costs and 13 times more days away from work, when compared to non-obese workers with comparable injuries.

The release notes that Kate Wolin, ScD, FACSM, associate professor at Loyola University’s Chicago School of Medicine, served as co-presenter of the session targeting “Obesity: Improving ROI by Using What Works,” in which she outlined the effectiveness of employer-based weight-loss programs.

Glennon goes on to point out that in June 2013, the American Medical Association (AMA) reclassified obesity as a disease, from which one out of every three Americans reportedly suffer.

“Classifying obesity as a disease has vast repercussions for care in worker’s compensation…these claimants require individualized evaluation. They’re more likely to have additional medical conditions, such as diabetes or heart disease, and may need a specialized plan to deal with complications, as well as bariatric equipment and home services,” Glennon says.